Jannik Sinner’s recent US Open victory didn’t exactly set the world on fire with TV ratings. In fact, his win saw some of the lowest viewership figures for a US Open final in recent memory, falling even behind the women’s final in terms of both TV ratings and YouTube views. And in a surprising revelation, Carlos Alcaraz’s Davis Cup first-round match, a relatively minor event in the grand scheme of things, has surpassed 400,000 views on YouTube.
That’s right, an early-stage group match in a tournament not as globally spotlighted as the US Open, has outperformed Sinner’s major final in terms of online attention. A fan on X highlighted this comparison, which would not go down well with the World No.1’s fans.
Omg highlights of Carlos’s match with Machac already got like almost 400k views while the bum uso men’s final with all the big ass promotion got like 736k sth lolll. Guess we all know who the real star here is pic.twitter.com/OA19flj8Qi
— Alex992417 (@alex992417) September 14, 2024
This raises a question – What metrics define a tennis superstar? It’s a mix of factors including viewership numbers, social media presence, global fan engagement, and performance consistency. While Sinner has made impressive strides in his career, Alcaraz’s ability to draw such significant attention—even in less high-profile events—speaks volumes about his current star power.
Alcaraz’s ability to attract massive viewership and engagement suggests he’s currently operating at a higher level of global recognition compared to Sinner. His charismatic presence, exciting playing style, and winning aura have helped him build a strong following that transcends the typical Grand Slam exposure.
It also helped that Alcaraz played in the Davis Cup for Spain, making him the biggest name in the team as well as the tournament alongside Novak Djokovic. The Davis Cup, over the years, has lost its sheen in the tennis calendar so it becomes news when a player of star power features in it for his country.
However, it still doesn’t take away the fact that the US Open could not salvage itself despite Sinner being in the final. It also didn’t help that Alcaraz did not make it past the Round of 64 in the tournament as a vast chunk of his fans would have presumably turned away from the screens.
To top it all, Sinner’s doping verdict, even though in his favor eventually, has seemingly hurt his popularity. Before the controversy, the Italian was largely a fan favorite for his skills outside the court too. But many enthusiasts were in no mood to let go and forgive, questioning the way the tennis system operates as many players accused of doping before Sinner, such as Simona Halep, were punished heavily.
So it seems that Alcaraz is winning the star power battle against Sinner and could do so more in the future, as long as he does not stay injured, continues to play good tennis and remains naturally likeable to fans, media and marketers alike.
